Time: 9:30AM – 3:00PM

Location: Above diversion dam in morning and upstream from parking lot at the end of the Spearfish bike trail in the afternoon.

Fish Landed: 3

Spearfish Creek 06/15/2015 Photo Album

On Saturday night at Deerfield Reservoir Jane and I experienced two intense thunderstorms while attempting to sleep in our tent at the Whitetail Campground. In addition we apparently set our shelter up on top of a mouse nest, and Jane’s sleep was continuously interrupted by the rustling sound of active rodents. Dave managed to get a reasonable amount of sleep before and after the bookend storms, but for some reason water leaked on his side of the tent causing his sleeping pad and clothing duffle to absorb moisture.

Hail from Saturday Night

After making breakfast and spreading out wet items to dry on Sunday morning, we decided to drive north to Spearfish, check out campsites for Monday night, continue west to Devil’s Tower in Wyoming, and then book a room at a hotel in Spearfish for Sunday night. Jane insisted she needed a rodent-free night of sleep and a hot shower.

We followed this plan and drove north on 14A through Spearfish Canyon as we progressed to Devil’s Tower. The canyon was beautiful with numerous tall wide vertical rock walls bordering the stream on the east and west sides. The stream was also quite attractive, although it was running quite high but with excellent clarity. The streams that we crossed on our drive north through the central section of the Black Hills were rushing muddy torrents, so I was pleased that Spearfish was spared this condition.

When we reached the small town of Savoy, SD, we made a left turn and detoured along  Little Spearfish Creek past Roughlock Falls and checked out two small USFS campgrounds, Timon and Rod and Gun. Both were tucked against the tall vertical rock walls, and each appeared to be mostly vacant, so we felt confident we could snag a site on Monday. Little Spearfish Creek was a magnet to the fisherman in the passenger’s seat as it meandered through a meadow and exhibited crystal clear flows. The small tributary was roughly one-fourth of the volume of the main creek.

From the East Entrance

We reversed direction and continued north along the canyon until we reached the town of Spearfish, and here we stopped a the visitor center and gathered information about hikes and bike rides in the area. Next we continued north and west into Wyoming until we reached Devil’s Tower National Monument. We learned that this was the first national monument in the United States, and it was designated that status in the early 1900’s by Theodore Roosevelt. We could not resist stopping outside the entrance to snap photos of the impressive towering rock formation above us.

Judging from the number of cars parked along the road, the prairie dog village was a major attraction, but since we have several within a mile of our house, we passed by and turned into the picnic area. We found a vacant picnic table under some shade trees, and since we had our cooler and food from camping, we quickly made sandwiches and enjoyed lunch in the shadow of the tower. After lunch we crossed to the smoke ring sculpture and took the obligatory photo of the tower in the middle of the ring. The information at the sculpture informed us that Devil’s Tower is a sacred spot for numerous native American people.

Through the Smoke Ring Sculpture

We continued on to the main parking lot at the base of Devil’s Tower, and we were surprised by the number of visitors to this small park in the northeast corner of Wyoming quite removed from any large population center. A 1.3 mile paved path beckoned us, so we made the casual hike around the base of the tall rock formation. Of course we snapped photos of Devil’s Tower from many different directions.

Dave and Devil’s Tower

We saw all there was to see at Devil’s Tower, so we returned to Spearfish and found a room at the Hampton Inn. Jane finally enjoyed the restful night she craved in the dry air conditioned room with hot water and laundered sheets. We took advantage of the continental breakfast on Monday morning and then packed our clothes and stopped at the nearby Wal-Mart for some necessary supplies. When we woke up on Monday we discovered that it was raining, and dark clouds to the south and west suggested that the worst had yet to arrive.

Despite the predicted adverse weather, I steadfastly clung to my plan to fish in Spearfish Creek on Monday. We drove south along the stream for roughly half the distance until we reached a wide parking lot that we observed during our northbound travels on Sunday.The canyon was wider at this point, and this enabled the swift flows to spread out. This was more appealing to me than the narrow chute sections that I observed farther to the south. Of course as soon as we pulled into the parking lot, the skies opened and a steady downpour pounded against the windshield. It was 9:00AM, so I waited for ten minutes until the rains subsided a bit, and then I quickly pulled on my Marmot raincoat and waders for protection against the elements.

Rain Cannot Stop Dave

I grabbed my Sage four weight rod, and Jane accompanied me as we walked north along the shoulder until we reached an area where the stream backed up behind a small dam. Jane offered to snap some photos, so I posed next to the small lake and pretended to fish along the edge. Upon completion of my modeling responsibilities, I approached the inlet and rigged my line with a Chernobyl ant, beadhead hares ear, and ultra zug bug. I made some drifts along the current seam where it entered the small lake, but nothing showed so I proceeded to work my way upstream.

A Smile for the Photographer

Running High but Clear

The stream in this section was quite clear, but the velocity was quite high which offered infrequent spots where trout could hold without expending excessive energy. For this reason I covered quite a bit of stream real estate in between casts. In the first hour I did manage two momentary hookups, but the action was quite slow so I exchanged the ultra zug bug for a salvation nymph. Finally midway through the morning I hooked and landed a pretty rainbow trout on the salvation, and since I was not confident I would land more fish, I paused to snap a couple photos.

Ultra Zug Bug Eater

The light rain continued and the ground was saturated, so I considered the effectiveness of worms in these wet conditions. Surely these trout were used to seeing fat juicy worms that washed into the creek. I clipped off the ultra zug bug and reconfigured my line so that the salvation was now my top fly with the light pink San Juan worm was at the point. This combination did not catch fire, but I did manage to land a six inch brown trout on the worm. As I moved upstream the long straight sections with rapids and fast water became longer, and the locations with slack water that might hold fish became more infrequent. This meant I spent more time circling away from the stream and then fighting back through thick brush to inspect new water. It was a lot of work for minimal return.

Through the Blossoms

In one area I discovered there was some slack water between the far bank and the main current, so I attempted to make some drifts by reaching out my rod over the main current. I succeeded in executing some reasonable passes through the slow water, but then I made a cast that hooked a submerged branch. The high fast water created enough fear that I wisely decided not to wade in the water. Instead I exerted direct pressure on the flies and broke off all three. It was now close to twelve o’clock, and I spotted a wooden bridge above me, so I used the broken flies as an excuse to quit for lunch. I followed the dirt road from the bridge to highway 14A and then hiked along the shoulder for a mile until I found Jane staying dry in the car.

I planned to return to the creek to fish and I did not want to spend time removing my waders and then putting them on again, so I asked if Jane would mind driving. In addition heavy clouds predicted more rain so we were not in a position to unpack the cooler and food bin to make sandwiches, so we returned to a Subway in Spearfish to buy lunch. As we drove north I noticed that the stream was much lower and concluded that the small dam below where we parked was a diversion dam. In fact the stream level appeared to be much closer to ideal and the clarity was quite good. Several miles before town we passed a large parking lot that was situated at the end of a bike trail. We noted this as a possible destination for afternoon fishing.

Originally I planned on driving to one of the two campsites along Little Spearfish Creek to make lunch and set up camp, and then it would be convenient to visit the lower meandering section near Roughlock Falls to fish. I checked the weather app on my phone, and now it appeared that the adverse weather would hang around until 6PM. Neither of us relished putting the tent up in the rain, so we decided to fish until 3 or 4PM, and then drive south to Wyoming or even Denver to escape the storm.

I also read that Spearfish Creek was a quality brown trout fishery where it passed through town. Now that I noted that the flows were lower below the diversion dam, this became another option, although I was lacking information on access points. After we bought our sandwiches, I made the decision to try the water upstream from the parking lot at the end of the bike trail. If there was a break in the weather, Jane could enjoy a bike ride, and this spot was conveniently located along our South Dakota inclement weather escape route. Of course as we pulled into the parking lot and began eating our lunches, the rain once again intensified. I finished my lunch and then relaxed in the dry comfort of the car for another ten minutes until the rain slowed to a reasonably tolerable level.

I was already dressed in my waders and raincoat, so after the let up, I grabbed my rod and strode down the well worn path to the stream. Since I lost all my flies before quitting for lunch, I reconfigured with a tan pool toy followed by a bright green caddis pupa and a beadhead hares ear. I had 1.5 hours to fish so I fished efficiently by making 3-5 casts in likely areas and then moving on. Unfortunately I was seeing no fish or signs of fish such as refusals or scattering shadows that usually reveal themselves as I wade upstream. In addition the sky once again darkened and the rain once again fell from the sky in a steady sheet.

The Brown Was Along the Right Edge

After 45 minutes I approached a very attractive pool where the stream spilled over some large boulders and carved out a deep hole with a large boulder forming the border along the left side. If this pool did not produce, then perhaps this section of Spearfish Creek was devoid of fish. My first casts probed the edge of the center current next to the rock and also on my side, but again I was chagrined to discover no sign of a fish. I took a couple steps forward and made a backhand cast to the spot where the water spilled over a rock. The pool toy held for a moment in the small eddy and then began to drift slowly to the slow shelf next to the right bank.

Best Fish From South Dakota

Much to my amazement the pool toy darted sideways, and I set the hook and felt the weight of a decent fish on my nine foot Sage. The fish initially dove toward the deepest part of the pool and then made a move toward the tail, but I applied side pressure and prevented further downstream progress. One more valiant power move toward the top of the pool depleted the energy stores, and I slid my net beneath a gorgeous wild brown trout with distinct black spots and a buttery gold background. This fish snatched the bright green caddis, and it was approximately thirteen inches in length. I gently released the brown to the depths of the pool and once again focused on fishing with renewed enthusiasm.

Unfortunately the rain remained steady and the stream straightened so that despite the reduced flow compared to the morning section, the number of holding spots diminished. I pressed on, but by 3PM I once again failed to see another sign of a fish, so I fought my way through some thick woods and bushes and found the highway. I crossed the road and hiked along the left shoulder until I arrived at the parking lot. Jane had taken a brief hike down the bicycle path, so I approached an informational sign next to the parking area where I learned that Spearfish Creek disappears underground during the summer at the north end of the canyon. Was I fishing in water the dries up in the summer, and did this explain the apparent lack of fish density?

After a few minutes Jane returned from her walk, and I removed all my fishing gear and changed into dry clothes for the return trip. We traveled south for three hours and found a nice campsite at Fish Canyon Campground in Guernsey State Park in Wyoming. The sky was nearly clear and the ground was dry, and we thoroughly enjoyed our evening away from the rain moving through South Dakota.

Spearfish Creek was a beautiful setting, and I would certainly consider another visit at a future date. I feel that I merely scraped the surface of this high gradient stream in the northern part of the Black Hills. Monday made me realize how lucky I am to have excellent fly shops in Colorado that provide accurate information on fishing conditions, river access and hatches and suggested flies. I would attempt to learn more about the diversion and fishing in town before another visit.

Time: 5:30PM – 6:30PM, 8:00PM – 9:00PM

Location: Point across from Whitetail CG lower loop; picnic area 1 mile from Whitetail CG.

Fish Landed: 2

Deerfield Reservoir 06/13/2015 Photo Album

After Jane and I finished dinner and cleaned up on Friday evening, we decided to take a walk. Initially we followed a path from the Whitetail Campground lower loop to the lake, and then we walked along the gravel road until we reached a day use picnic area where we scouted the shore of the reservoir. The weather was extremely calm between 8 and 9 PM, and I spotted quite a few dimples on the surface of the lake.

Happy Hour at the Campsite

After returning from Castle Creek on Saturday afternoon, Jane and I enjoyed a happy hour, and then I decided to take my fly rod down to the lake where I spotted quite a few rises the previous evening. I should add that the campground hostess warned us that the lake had trout, but it was also over populated with small rock bass, which she referred to as red eyes. The weather on Saturday was quite different from the calm that we witnessed on Friday with overcast skies and strong winds that created a small chop on the portions of the lake that were not protected.

Fish Rising By the Dead Branch

I tied a size 16 olive brown deer hair caddis to my Sage five weight and tossed out a twenty foot cast to the area where a dead branch had fallen along the edge of the impoundment. It wasn’t long before a small fish gulped the imitation, and I stripped in a tiny two inch rock bass. Apparently the campground hostess was not spinning tales to discourage me from fishing. This same scene played out over and over as I landed at least ten miniature rock bass over the next half hour. In a state of frustration I hiked across the small peninsula to test the water on the south side of the point. The wind was blowing from the north, so this protected area at least offered some smooth water. I was hoping I could distinguish the quick little rock bass rise from the slower measured gulp of a trout.

A Rainbow from Deerfield Reservoir

Finally after much casting and the release of more nuisance rock bass, I coaxed a rise from a chunky twelve inch rainbow trout that found the deer hair caddis to its liking. I was somewhat encouraged by this auspicious turn of events, however I was unable to replicate the trout interest. Perhaps a streamer would be too large for the rock bass and only of interest to the trout? I found a beadhead black woolly bugger in my fleece pocket and tied it to my line and began to make twenty foot casts and then stripped the bugger.

The change to a woolly bugger made no difference, and the voracious rock bass attacked the large black fly with as much gusto as the deer hair caddis. I promised Jane I would return for dinner by 6-6:30, so I said goodbye to the nuisance red eyes and climbed back up the path to our camp site where I helped Jane prepare shrimp stir fry.

After dinner and clean up I knew I had an hour of daylight based on Friday night’s experience, so I grabbed my gear, stashed it in the car and drove down the road to the picnic area. I parked just beyond the southern corner of the day use lot and began fishing there. Similar to my earlier session, the lake was riffled by the wind, but the air movement quickly died back, and once again fish began to smack the surface. In fact the reservoir became alive with numerous rises and splashes including fish that leaped high above the surface for a meal. Unfortunately nearly all of this activity was beyond my casting range.

Smooth Water

I fired casts out as far as I could and began to cover the water by making several steps to my left after each cast until I reached a strip of shore where a steep fifteen foot bank was behind me. In this area I managed to hook and land another twelve inch rainbow trout on the deer hair caddis, but I also caught a bunch of tiny rock bass similar to the earlier session. As darkness approached I generated two additional momentary hook ups, but I failed to maintain contact more than a brief second or two.

Eight

As the darkness closed in around me, I looked back toward the picnic area and noticed Jane above me in the parking lot. I did not want to keep her waiting, and it was growing impossible to see my fly, so I adjourned to the car. Two trout in two hours of fishing was fair, but frequently releasing midget rock bass certainly created frustration. I regretted not wearing my waders, as that would have enabled me to wade into the water ten feet or so, and this would have extended my casts deeper into the lake where I suspect the trout were rising.

Time: 2:00PM – 4:00PM

Location: .5 mile from parking lot off of route 188

Fish Landed: 6

Castle Creek 06/13/2015 Photo Album

After our challenging single track bike ride on Saturday morning, Jane and I returned to the campground and recharged our batteries with a tasty lunch. After a bit of relaxation, I suggested that we explore Castle Creek below Deerfield Reservoir. The trail map indicated that there was a fisherman parking lot with walk-in fishing in Kinney Canyon, so we decided to explore this area.

We drove around the north side of the reservoir and arrived at the designated parking lot by 1:30PM. Four vehicles already occupied the lot, and Castle Creek meandered through a meadow next to the parking area. The sky clouded up and a slight breeze ruffled the grass in the fields nearby. Jane planned to hike to the dam and back, so initially I grabbed only my backpack, frontpack, net, rod and reel. The stream appeared to be small albeit running bank high, so I assumed I could fish without wearing waders.

Flows Were High but Clear

We hiked through a gate and proceeded another .5 miles until we reached a point where the bank between the road and the stream was manageable for a safe descent. As I stood on the road overlooking the scene, I realized that the stream was quite high and over the banks in many places creating a marshy environment. I knew I would regret not having waders, so I reversed direction and returned to the car while Jane continued her hike to the dam. As I climbed into my waders, the sky darkened and a few raindrops fell, so I pulled my Marmot raincoat on for warmth and protection. I retraced my steps to the point where the stream curved near the road, and this time I descended to a large bend. The first half mile section of Castle Creek from the parking lot was characterized by many twists and bends as apparently some stream improvement work had been completed.

Finally I arrived at the edge of the creek with my Orvis four piece four weight rod, and I began my venture with a Chernobyl ant and a beadhead hares ear nymph. Because of the the deep water conditions I used a three foot long dropper off the Chernobyl. I progressed upstream for a bit around several large bends and finally hooked and landed a brightly colored but small brook trout on the hares ear. Despite this success I was dissatisfied with the results, so I converted to a copper john and ultra zug bug below the ant. This did the trick, and I landed five additional trout over the remaining 1.5 hours on Castle Creek. Three of the landed trout were browns, and two more brookies nestled in my net.

A Pretty Native Brown Trout

At 2PM the sky grew even darker and the wind picked up, so I switched the Chernobyl ant for a pool toy for better visibility in the low light. Around this same time period I observed a wave of little yellow stoneflies in the air, and I read that a hares ear is a reasonable imitation of the yellow sally nymph, so I swapped the copper john for a hares ear. Despite this astute analysis, the last five fish all inhaled the ultra zug bug. So much for matching the hatch.

The most productive locations were at the bends in the creek. The banks blocked the rushing water enough to create slower deep spots where the fish could avoid the heavy current. Toward the end of my upstream movement, the creek grew much straighter, and this resulted in many fewer fish holding spots. A fisherman was forced to hike much farther between probable holding locations.

Another Brown

I did not want to over extend my fishing time on the first day, so at four o’clock I returned to the car and found Jane trying to stay warm and avoid the wind by huddling in the passenger seat in the car. Six fish in two hours on a small stream with high water was certainly encouraging, and this was accomplished without having any local knowledge of insect activity. Perhaps the Black Hills escape would pay off.

Time: 12:15PM – 3:15PM

Location: Parvin Lake State Wildlife Area along the dam area

Fish Landed: 3, Dan 1

Parvin Lake 06/09/2015 photo album

Heavy rains during May along with high temperatures in the 80’s converted Colorado rivers and streams into whitewater adventure parks. My son Dan returned from a backpacking trip to the San Juan national forest, and he was interested in spending a day fishing, but the question of where gnawed at my brain. I had a bit of success in Cheesman Canyon on May 26, and the flows there continued to hover in the 1100 cfs range, but the drive and hike to the South Platte was probably a greater commitment than Dan desired.

I began scanning the department of water resources flow data and actually found four drainages that represented viable options. The Yampa River below Stagecoach Reservoir was running at 145cfs and Bear River southwest of Yampa, CO was registering 65 cfs. These were both manageable, but they represented drives in excess of three hours. The Dolores River below McPhee Reservoir in the southwest corner of Colorado was running at 58 cfs. This actually represents very low conditions, and driving to Durango and beyond is an even greater time commitment. The last viable river opportunity was the Taylor River below Taylor Reservoir, and this fine fishery was listed at 455 cfs, I have fished at this level before, and it is doable, but even the Taylor requires a four hour drive.

We decided to abandon our efforts to find a stream during peak run off season, so instead we studied the map for a lake. The lake needed to be ice free yet cold enough to maintain a trout population, as we preferred coldwater fish over warmwater species. We identified several lakes in the Loveland and Ft. Collins area of the state and then quickly settled on Parvin Lake in the Red Feather Lakes area after soliciting some input from an Instagram acquaintance.

Tuesday morning we packed the Santa Fe with the critical fly fishing gear and made the two hour drive to Parvin Lake. The weather was quite nice with mostly blue skies, and high temperatures at Parvin Lake reached the high seventies and low eighties. Dan forgot to purchase a fishing license, but fortunately there was a sign at the check in cabin that provided a number to call to purchase a license over the phone. Dan took advantage and bought a one day license for $9.00. Meanwhile I began to chat with Seth, another fisherman who returned to his car after fishing during the morning. Seth suggested some places to fish, and he mentioned that there were several rising feeders.

We decided to eat our lunches at the car before hiking to the lake, and by 12:15 we were on our way. We signed the fishing log at the cabin and wrote down the time we entered. A two lane path led to a fishing research area, and we made a left turn at the cluster of buildings and followed the shoreline for .3 miles until we reached an earthen embankment that served as a dam. Here we stopped and prepared to fish. Dan tied on a parachute hopper, and I elected to begin with a peacock stimulator. We both spotted some sporadic rises and tossed out our dry flies to the vicinity of the observed fish.

Parvin Lake View

Dan Gets Ready to Fly Fish

It only took fifteen minutes before Dan’s rod displayed a sharp bend, and he expertly played a thirteen inch rainbow to his net. This quick action gave both of us a boost of optimism at the start of our exploratory lake fishing adventure.

I turned my attention back to the area where I was stationed and noticed that several rises followed each occurrence of increased wind. This typically suggests that terrestrials splashed into the lake, so I added a dropper to my stimulator and tied on a black fur ant. I was now covering two possible food sources on Parvin Lake. As I was changing my line configuration, I observed two rises within a couple feet of the bank to my right, so I tossed a cast to that area. On the third cast I was shocked to see a fish emerge from the lake to engulf the stimulator, but I retained enough presence to set the hook and land a ten inch brown trout. I was on the scoreboard with my first lake fish of the year, and a skunking was in my rear view mirror.

Dave’s First Parvin Lake Trout

The cycle of wind, riffled surface and a few rises continued for the next hour, but I was unable to entice any additional movement to my two fly combination. Dan was experiencing a similar lack of success, although he was progressing through a series of fly changes. From my position I could see a small point to the south and then another small indentation in the shoreline, so I decided to explore new water. When I circled around the point I encountered the outlet of the lake, but fortunately the water was low enough that I could wade to the other side.

Dan Wades Along the Edge

I continued fishing the stimulator and ant in the smooth water on the south side of the outlet with no success, and then as I returned to the accelerating flow above the outlet, I spotted a subtle surface rise. I began drifting my flies in the moving current and on the tenth pass, a small six inch brown trout dashed to the surface and nabbed the stimulator. I was happy to land a second fish, but the size was lacking.

Again I moved on, and when I rounded the point, I found Dan in the southern end of the first small inlet that we fished. Since the dry fly fishing was quite slow, I decided to experiment with a streamer. I sat down on a rock and swapped my floating line for a sinking line, and then I tied on a peanut envy. In retrospect, I probably should have stayed with the floating line, as the the lake was relatively shallow, and the fast sinking line probably caused my streamer to sink too fast and too deep. I worked out some nice casts from the side of the point, but the fish did not appear to envy the peanut envy, so I exchanged it for a damsel wiggle nymph.

Snow Capped Ridge and Cool Reflections

I tried different retrieves with the damsel nymph, but again the fish were close mouthed. In one last ditch effort to induce some streamer action, I knotted a Cathy’s super bugger to my line and then added a trailing bright green caddis pupa. Perhaps the bugger would attract fish, and then they would react to the smaller caddis. These were all great strategies, but the fish did not agree.

I returned with the bugger and caddis combination to the area where I began fishing after lunch. At least I knew there were fish in this area, but the streamer approach did not succeed. The wind riffled the surface, and a few random rises followed within casting distance, so I once again swapped the spool on my reel, and this time I tied a size 16 olive brown deer hair caddis to my line. I applied some floatant and flicked a cast to my right in the vicinity of one of the earlier rises. On the fifth such cast a mouth suddenly appeared and engulfed my small offering. I set the hook, and a silver missile streaked across the lake from right to left. I applied some side pressure and turned it back toward the bank, and after several more brief runs, I slipped the net under a chunky thirteen inch rainbow.

Dave’s Rainbow with a Caddis in the Lip

I was encouraged by this surface success, but the number of rising fish really dwindled and the air temperature rose, so after another twenty minutes of fruitless casting we decided to call it quits. Dan and I hiked back to the parking lot and stashed our gear and made the drive back to Denver. Along the way we detoured to the O’Dell Brewing Company tap room in Ft. Collins where I quaffed a tasty 90 Shilling. It was fun to explore a new area, and I enjoyed the company of my son while catching a few fish while the rivers and streams raged unrelentingly elsewhere in the state of Colorado.

Time: 10:30AM – 4:00PM

Location: Just above the destroyed RV park in the canyon special regulation water and then upstream a mile.

Fish Landed: 13

Big Thompson River 05/28/2015 Photo Album

Sometimes it pays to be a contrarian. This was the lesson I grasped today on the Big Thompson River.

With above average rain in May and unseasonably cold temperatures, Colorado streams were swollen and discolored, and the snow melt had yet to commence. This limited my options for a day trip, but a review of the department of water resources web site yielded two possibilities; South Boulder Creek and the Big Thompson River. I chose the Big Thompson since I visited this local stream once this year and once in 2014 with reasonable success. The flows were a steady 125 CFS, and I knew from experience that this level is quite manageable. Also the stream reports from the area fly shops indicated that clarity was decent, and they reported angler success was fair to good. The shops suggested fishing deep with prince nymphs, San Juan worms, and scuds; and they recommended adding a baetis nymph imitation in the afternoon.

My Starting Point on the Big Thompson River

When I arrived at a pullout just above the RV park that got destroyed in the 2013 flood, I checked the water, and indeed it was flowing somewhat high with a bit of stain. Before rushing to a starting position, I checked my fleece pouch and added some pink San Juan worms, orange scuds, hares ear nymphs, prince nymphs, ultra zug bugs and marabare nymphs. I was dutifully following the recommendations of the area fly shops, and when I moved next to the river, I rigged with a strike indicator and split shot along with a bright pink San Juan worm and beadhead ultra zug bug.

With this configuration I worked through three attractive deep runs with no success, so I began experimenting with different fly combinations. I snipped off the ultra zug bug and replaced it with an orange scud. At the point I also experimented with a beadhead hares ear, a classic prince nymph, a bright green marabare, and a copper marabare; but none of these favorites produced fish. Perhaps the top fly was too bright? I swapped out the bright pink worm for a less obtrusive light pink version. Finally this did the trick, and I quickly landed two ten inch rainbow trout on the light pink worm.

Light Pink San Juan Worm Visible

My fish count remained at two as noon approached, and then I suffered through a half hour dry spell before I once again hooked a fish. This catch was a brown trout, as I got a good look before it broke off at the San Juan worm. I cursed the abraded knot, and unfortunately I only had one more light pink worm in my fleece book. I discovered that the thread was unraveling on my choice of a replacement, but then I uncovered another pink worm made with a sparkle chenille. I found this fly on a tree many years ago, so I elected to give it a try. Much to my chagrin on the third cast I snagged bottom, and it was in a deep fast run, so I was forced to snap off two more flies.

It was now noon so I returned to the car to soothe my frustration with a quick lunch. After lunch next to the river, I returned to the car and configured my line yet again. I had plenty of light tan or beige worms, so I tied one of these to my line in the top position and then added a salvation nymph to the point position. I fished this combination with confidence after lunch, but either the fish lost interest in worms, or they favored only light pink, because an hour elapsed with no action other than rigid sticks and rocks along the stream bed.

125 CFS and Slightly Stained

As I was stuck on two fish and time was rapidly passing, I began to fear that I was destined for a two fish day. On several occasions I witnessed a refusal to my strike indicator. How should I interpret this? Despite the conventional wisdom of the fly shop reports, some fish were looking toward the surface for their food. Surely dry/dropper fishing could be no worse than the slow action of my worm and nymph combination, and at least this would allow me to drift along the bank more effectively. I took the plunge and tied on a tan Charlie boy hopper with an ultra zug bug on a long three foot dropper.

Unfortunately as I made this change in tactics, a strong cross wind began to torment me, and it became very difficult to place casts within six inches of the rocky bank. I persisted however and managed to provoke a couple refusals to the hopper. Again I was forced to reconsider my approach, as this confirmed that a surface fly was receiving attention, but apparently the Charlie Boy was not what they desired. I decided to change to a size 14 stimulator with a gray body. This was a smaller offering yet still quite visible in the swirly currents and variable light.

The Stimulator Was My Best Producer

Another Pretty Rainbow

My choice proved to be a colossal success. For the remainder of the afternoon I cast the gray stimulator along the very edge of the river and experienced great success while landing eleven more fish. Most were brown trout with a couple rainbows in the mix. On two instances I allowed the dry fly to slowly creep upstream to the source of a vortex, and a brown came out of nowhere to slurp the fly. Clearly the fish were tucked tight to rocks and stream side structure, but they could be coaxed to the surface with a drag free drift over their secure holding positions.

Nice Colors

The fly shops recommended fishing deep with the usual suspects of high run off offerings, but I was a contrarian. I fished a single buoyant dry fly and created success. Today the choice of fly was key, but more important was the presentation and the choice of where to drift the fly. Fishing in high water is a challenge, but I’ll continue my efforts to beat the odds as long as reasonable options exist.